The visit of the Minister of National Defence Dimitris Avramopoulos to the Areas of Responsibility of the 79th and 96th Higher National Guard Battalion Commands has been completed.
Mr. Avramopoulos, accompanied by the Chief of HNDGS General Michail Kostarakos and the Chief of HAGS Lieutenant General Christos Manolas, visited military outposts and units on Chios, Oinouses, Panaghia, Ikaria, Agathonisi and Samos Islands, he was briefed on their duties and missions and addressed their personnel, stressing among others:
“As a person, who bears the political responsibility for the Armed Forces, as well as a citizen of this country, I feel really proud, safe and I owe this to you.
On behalf of all of us I would like to extend a cordial greeting to you, to your families, to our personnel, to our officers, NCOs, civilian personnel, conscripts who live and serve in the frontiers, in the frontier line that stretches from Evros to Kastellorizo. The Greek State respects you and acknowledges the great national duties you perform.
I wish to assure you that the political and the military leadership as well, we care about you and try to redress all grievances that have been committed as soon as possible. I am being constantly informed about the problems you are dealing with through the excellent cooperation with your leaders; and we face them and they are gradually solved…
… On the front of volatility and instability that extends all over our region, from Caucasus, Ukraine up to the entire area of Northern Africa, culminated by the developments in Syria, there is an oasis of security which is Greece.
An oasis of stability, with a stabilizing role for as many times as it will be needed. This is why along with the military leadership, every time we are asked to we respond positively to everything may contribute to the International Community according to the principles of the International Law, as well as to our conventional commitments towards the Alliance and the European Union.
We constantly send a message to the leaders of our neighbouring countries that things have changed and that what people seek for are peace, security, prosperity. I wish to remind you that several years ago nobody expected that millions of our neighbours would visit our country peacefully to share with us our hospitality and the beauties of our countries.
This is a deeper message that peoples send to their leaders and ask them to be particularly careful. To make a jump to the future, to receive the messages that our times send them, to adapt themselves to them and respond to the peaceful, cordial and honest policy which our Homeland has adopted since many years…
…..Over the last years exercises which are organized and conducted all over our territory have increased significantly. And this doesn’t happen only because we want to demonstrate what we have, nor because we want to send messages of fear and distress to our neighbourhood, but mostly to send messages of security and safety to the Greek people.
At the same time, we wish to remind you that Greece, beyond and above the crisis, thanks to the sacrifices of the Greek people and your everyday efforts, still has one of the most reliable defence systems in Europe.
This system, except its main objective, has also another one: to serve the cause of peace, cooperation, good neighbourhood. So, I do not hesitate to say once more that what we experience within the Hellenic Armed Forces, within the main coordinated security structures of the country, sends a message of peace to the wider area.
On the other hand, we are also ready. This readiness is guaranteed by the system of the Hellenic Armed Forces whose heart, as I said, are you.”